Seat for bicycles



(No Model.)

alim-HELPS. SEAT FOR BIGYGLES. No..408,7'43. Patented Aug; 13, Y1889'.

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UNITED STATESI PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES HYPIAIELPS, OF CUYAHOGA FALLS, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO EDWIN LEE BROWN AND EDVIN F. BROWN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

' SEAT VFOR BICYCLES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 408,743, dated August 13, 1889.

Application filed Julie 5, 1889. Serial No. 313,170. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. PHELrs, of Cuyahoga Falls, in the county of Summit and State of Ohio, have invented a certain 5 new and useful Improvement in Seats for Cycles, of which the following is a specifica-V tion, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side vie-w of a cycle-seat emro bodying my improvement. Fig. 2 is abottom plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail top plan of the spring-seat of the same; and Fig.

4 is'an end view of Fig. 3, partly in section,

- through one of the screw-clips or eyebolts 15 and connections.

My invention relates to the saddles commonly used onv bicycles and analogous vehicles.

It consists of a saddle in combination with 2o spiral springs having the general contour of semi-elliptic springs. In otherwords, it consists of a knotted hammockspring.

In the drawings, which represent the best known embodiment of my invention, A rep- 2 5 resents the leathern saddle, A being the reenforcing strip of leather around the usual central slot, the margin of which is indicated by a. This saddle is supported in front by the upper ends of a pair of obliquely-spiral 3o springs h b, uniting in a socket c, cast 'upon the stretching-frame or front hook C, to which the leathern saddle is riveted at c. The rear end of the leathern saddle is similarly supported by a pair of similar springs 3 5 d d, which, however, are secured in separate sockets e e to alarger stretching-framenamely, the hind bow or cantle E, to which the leathern saddle is riveted at e These stretching-frames have no strut to hold them 4o apart, the springs performing this duty as well as .supporting the saddle. Y

The springs b Z9 are united 'at their lower ends by a cross-piece h', both ot which springs and the cross-piece being (all three) formed 4.5 by bending a single steel wire B of round cross-section. Similarly the springs dd and their cross-piece d are formed of a similar t single wire D. The wires B and D below the spiral part'are secured to a spring-seat F by 5o meansof screw-clips or eyebolts G and their nuts g, the spring-seat being hollowed out at screw-clips.

the corners for the reception of the eyebolts. The top or face ot the spring-seat is also provided with two parallel grooves f f to receive the wires B and D and keep them secured against lateral displacement at their junction with the spring-seat, the eyebolt, in conjunction with the spring-seat, preventing vertical displacement of the wires. The springseat is sufficiently hollowed out at the corners (for the reception of the heads of the eyebolts) to let the wires B and D down to the bottoms of the ends of the grooves whether the cross-pieces (which, being themselves entirely out of the grooves, obviously keep the adjacent uncoiled ends of the springs b h and d d above the grooves) may be placed at a greater or less distance from their respective This construction obviously affords a convenient means of adjusting the -tension in the saddle itself, and, in fact, the

tension of the saddle and springs when combined and considered as a whole, the tension being increased by setting the cross-pieces nearer the screw clips, which act as setscrews. As shown, p the heads of the eyebolts are at the bottoms of their recesses, because the cross-pieces are supposed to be set at their farthest adjustment from their respective eyebolts.

The spring-seat is hollowed out at f f to receive the seat-rod H (shown in Fig. 4 only) of the bicycle or other vehicle, the set-screw L securing the cycle-seat in any desired location thereon. The spring-seat is also hollowed out above the seat-rod to dispense with unnecessary material and make a skeleton casting thereof.

I have used the tern1obliquely spiral in describing the springs to indicate that (neglecting the curvature of the axis of the spiral corresponding with the general contour of the spring as a whole) the angle'which the' radius of the spiral makes-with its axis is other than a right angle. In the springs shown the obliquity of this angle is so great and the pitch ot the spirals so small that successive coils are contiguous, this construction vslightly stiffening thesprings against the lateral vibration.

The spring-seat is located at some distance from each end of the saddle and the axis of IOO the spiral is practically co-extensive with the length of the saddle and not confined to a particular point in the length of the same. By this construction a desirable forward and backward as well as vertical vibration of the saddle is obtained; and in addition to these motions there is a torsional vibration (in the horizontal plane) around the spring-seat to accommodate the alternate propelling motions of the legs of the rider, which torsional iexibility is obviously impaired when the spiral is bunched together in one spot under the end of the saddle.

The springs ZJ and d, corresponding with each other-that is, on the same side of the spring-seat-in connection with the springseat obviously form, when the whole effect is considered, a universally-fiexible semi-elliptic spring.

CHARLES H. PIIELPS.

Witnesses:

JOHN C. CASTLE, LUTHER PHELPS. 

